Word Origin & History

late Old English tannian "to convert hide into leather" (by steeping it in tannin), from Medieval Latin tannare "tan, dye, a tawny color" (c.900), from tannum "crushed oak bark," used in tanning leather, probably from a Celtic source (e.g. Breton tann "oak tree"). The meaning "make brown by exposure to the sun" first recorded 1520s. To tan (someone's) hide in the figurative sense is from 1660s. Related: Tanned; tanning.

Example Sentences for tan

Let the leatherist guard his premises with a good-sized Black—and tan.

He rose when she entered, and if he was not as pale as she was, it was because his tan dissembled it.

There was a dull flush showing through the tan of Fletcher's skin.

Tan also is due to pigment in the skin and is caused by light.

Code had gone a sickly pallor that looked hideous through his tan.

There would be plenty of time to get their tan on when they got out to sea.

His face was pale beneath the tan as he stepped out into the morning sun.